Getting Prepared for Race Day

For some of us, The Pittsburgh Marathon is about 7 days away.  If you're a weirdo like me, then you've already planned and prepared what's going in your race bag, what you'll eat, and what you'll need afterwards.  I've made a list of some essentials on race day.

Outfit
•Shoes
•Socks
•Braces(if needed)
•Bra
•Underwear
•Shorts
•Top
•Long Sleeves(If needed)

•Fanny Pack

•Gels

•Inhaler

•Bib (Most important!!)

Food
•Breakfast
•Something for after the race
•Gels or whatever you use during the race

•Extra Water

In the gym bag

•Change of clothing (everything!)

•Change of shoes
•Instant Ice packs
•Ibprofin
•Extra safty pins
•Foam roller
•Hair Gumbies (hair tie)
•Bobby pins
•First Aid Kit

•Toe nail clippers

•Tweezers

•Deodorant
•Baby wipes (if you're going out after, you'll understand)

•Body Spray

•Bio Freeze, Tigerbalm, ice hot
•Purell
•Headphones
•Music

•Cell phone
•Cell phone and music chargers
•Sunscreen
•Camera

•Money

A lot of things seem like common sense but when you're packing a bag right before race day, you're bound to be nervous. I'm the type of person that will forget something like bobby pins and then have a total mental breakdown the night before when I know very well that there is a Wal*Mart down the street from where I'm staying. 

Usually by the time I'm done running whoever is waiting for me is starving and wants to go eat so I try to pack enough things to keep me from smelling after the race where ever I go. 

I still haven't decided what I'm eating before the race but I did go to Panera before my run the other day. I got my pre race favorite of Chicken Sorrentina Pasta and classic salad with a black iced coffee. This might be my night before food option. 

Are you running Pittsburgh half or full?

What are you favorites to take with you? 

My Perfect Weekend

It's Monday night and ending my 3 day weekend with my husband. Though, we only have a dog and a cat we both have jobs and never spend as much time together as we would like too. There was one bad part to my weekend...I didn't get to my long run. Whoops. It's killing me right now. BUT, here's how my weekend went:

Friday: I worked in Morgantown until 3:30pm. Then I went to CrossFit to do 14.5. Afterwards, I gave Adam the choice of going to the gym or dinner. He picked dinner. 

It's not the healthiest but it was wonderful. 

Saturday: 8am CrossFit and we went to Panera for breakfast.

It was delicious! I've never had the Green Smoothy before. It tasted like it had bananas in it. I also had the Power Breakfast with Egg Whites. It was very light but filling. I wasn't hungry until around dinner time. 

Afterwards, we went on a search for a road bike. We've been talking about me getting a road bike for some time so I thought we would at least get sized and try to find something. We went to three bike stores in our area and by 2:30pm I had a roadbike. Now Adam wants one so we can go riding together. He's been searching all weekend. 

I am pleased to introduce: "Tabata the Trek"! It will look great right next to "Dusty the Diamondback". (Whoever can figure who Dusty is named after will get a special hug.)  Later that night Adam and I had a date night in house. I made healthy homemade chicken and the popcorn that everyone is making from a paper bag. We watched Despicable Me 2 but Adam fell asleep half way through. I thought it was a cute movie! 

Sunday: We woke up early(thanks to Hudson our Goldendoodle) so I made us breakfast. 

Buttermilk Blueberry Bread, thanks Pinterest. We hung out at home for a while and then went on search for a Bucs Jersey for this afternoon. We spent most of our day gone but when we can home we took Hudson for a bath at the pet wash. It's really cool! It's like a car wash, except for the dog. Duh..sorry Two hours later he came clean. 

Monday:This morning I woke up at 5:30 to meet my friend, Sherry at CrossFit. I've been missing her so we made plans to meet this morning. I'm really glad she held me accountable because at 5:30am that was the only thing getting me out of bed. 

Adam and I, both took today off to go to the Pirates Home Opener. I've always loved baseball, even when they sucked. I'm too young to remember a winning season. I think I was 2 or 3 the last time they had a great season except for last season. It was a perfect day for the game! It started off cold but then warmed up tremendously. 

We packed a lunch to eat before we went into the game but about halfway through we decided to go get something. 

That wasn't worth the wait. It was good but not $9.25 good. I even missed the perogie race! That was the worst part. 

The best part was that we had great seats! 

So I missed my long run this weekend but I finally got to spend time with my little family. I know I probably could have squeezed it in there somewhere but it was a weekend that we needed together.  Sorry, my life isn't that exciting but I thought I would share it with you. 

Tomorrow's goal: 10 miles(after work)

Have you ever neglected running or a workout for family or a friend that came into town?

The fur kids just wanted some attention this weekend.  

The Importance of Meal Prepping

Sometimes I think meal prepping is my favorite day. I usually do my meal prep on Sunday. I'll figure out what I'm going to be hungry for, go get groceries, and start prepping. I'm also extremely lazy when it comes to cooking. I like to meal prep for the week because then I don't have to think about cooking every day, it's done incase I'm running late, and I never have excuses for not eating healthy during a busy week. 

I keep my meal prepping extremely simple. Like I said, I'm lazy and really don't feel like cooking all day. It's Sunday so I like to try to spend time with my husband and little fur famiy. So, here's a little idea of what my meal prepping looks like. 

Breakfast:

-Hard boiled eggs 

-Banana 

-Orange

-Oatmeal 

Hard boiled eggs are usually my favorite because they're so easy to make. 

Lunch/Dinner:

-Chicken

-Rice, quinoa

-Vegertables

-Fruit 

Here's how this week added up:

Breakfast: 2 hard boile eggs and an apple 

Lunch: Cottage cheese and an orange 

Dinner: Broccoli slaw w/diced tomatoes and chickpeas 

Confession: I also added 3 bagels, a chicken quesidilla for dinner, Olive Garden for lunch one day and dinner with my family. (These were different days people I can't eat that much in one day) 

Really? I'm not upset. I was, but I am still tweeking my meal preps. If you look at my pictures, I didn't prep enough food so I was still hungry by the time I got home from running or CrossFit. I have a long run planned this weekend so I'm not too upset. Over the years I've had to tell mysel that it's okay if I make a few bad decisions as long as it doesn't become a habit. 

With that being said, one of my lunch additions was a panera whole grain bagel. 

It was very good dipped in my cottage cheese. (I'm a weirdo, I know) I didn't toast it or anything but I was full until after my CrossFit class that night.

 I actually use to work at a bagel bakery in college so bagels aren't my first choice to eat, but I think Panera's might be my favorite. 

Who meal preps?

Do you sometimes not prep enough food and make a few bad decisions? 

Running and CrossFit are my favorites.

Through my childhood- teen years I've played a lot of spots. I've pretty much tried everything except running. Weird... But, recently I was thinking about why I love running and CrossFit. I started CrossFit on June 15,2013 so not even a year ago. I've been running for the past 6 years and I like that because it's my alone time. I usually shut my phone off for my long runs so I don't feel obligated to check it. I swear, I can go all week without a single phone call and the second I get to the park to run, my phone blows up with text messages, phone calls, Facebook posts, tweets to me etc... I usually know someone couldn't get a hold of me when my sister shows up at the park to interrupt my run.  That's happened quit a few times. Anyways, I was thinking about every sport that I've played and why they didn't add up to CrossFit. Here's what I've come up with: 

Ballet/lyrical/dance/gymnastics: This was my longest sport. I started dance and gymnastics when I was 4 or 5? and graduated after 13 years there. I lived the sport but what kept me was my instructors. The students were nice but they all had their own cliques.  They weren't the first ones to care if you hit a "pr" or got technique that you've never done. Actually, they were kind of stuck up. 

 Soccer/Softball: Soccer and baseball are probably my two favorite sports. I started soccer when I was 8 quit until I was 12 and started back up until I graduated. Let's be honest here, I wasn't that great. I lost a lot of confidence when I would ask for help but the coach wouldn't help me. It wasn't a sport where everyone got a chance to play. I spent most of my time on the bench. The other players really didn't care if you played or not but if they didn't play then all he'll would break loose. 

Swimming: I swam for 8 years before Jr. High. I loved it, but I had to chose between swimming and soccer. Terrible idea. I was also "the fat kid" so I probably wasn't that good. 

Kickboxing: Kickboxing was my cross training to running. I loved it but you couldn't go at your pace and it stopped becoming challenging after high school.  At one point the class was full of age of 65+ and the next week it would be full of children. That's fine but our classes were so full that you could nearly get your workout in. 

I think that wraps everything up. So back to why I love running and CrossFit. 

Running: You don't need to relay on anyone. You put your headphones on or listen to you breathing and your good to go. There's no bench to sit on unless you're tiered. You are your own team mate. Whether you're first or last, someone will always be cheering you on. And if not, you'll have your thighs. 

CrossFit: At the CrossFit Box that I go too, we have two coaches. Anytime you need help with form, they are there to help without judging or being annoyed. I've also never felt so welcome in a sport. Everyone is your friend and will help and cheer you on. You can be fat, thin, fit, skinny, as long as you put out the effort in and try(without cheating) then you'll learn something. 

If you've never tried CrossFit, try it. I hope you love it. 

Last night, one of my bestfriends came home to visit. We went to Panera to grab something to eat and I had lent and my long run today in mind.  I always forget to ask for the apple when I go instead of extra bread. 

Last night I tried the "You pick two" again. I love the "You pick two" because you can always try something new. I also love that panera puts the calorie content beside everything. I stopped being a calorie counter but it's nice to know when I'm eating. I ordered half Mac n' Cheese and half of a Tuna Salad Sandwhich. That was the first time I had either. They were both great. Maybe a little too much bread but it filled me up for my long run this morning. 

Today's goal is a 10 mile run. I ran 5 the other day so I'm going to work on my long run today. It's supposed to be almost 50 degrees, so that's exciting! 

What's your longest run this weekend?